Thread by @AdamWagner1

Fascinating (and important) discussion in my mentions about Stephen Yaxley-Lennon and the limits of how violent ordinary people should be towards him.

I’m going to try and summarise this albeit skewed sample in this thread

A *lot* of support for the man who threw milkshake at him, ranging from

(1) even if not directly provoked Y-L’s politics are so violent that he needs to be physically attacked wherever he goes

(2) in any case the guy was being provoked so it’s fine and understandable

A lot of people who don’t know that throwing a drink at someone can be an assault in criminal law, so think they are drawing a line between that and violence (eg punching) - though courts wouldn’t draw that distinction

So criminal lawyers in my mentions less sanguine

A worrying lack of any mention of authorities such as police who you would hope would be able to use state coercion to prevent thuggish behaviour on the streets

Worrying as seems to be conscious/unconscious feeling that individuals will need to take matters into their own hands

Very little sympathy for Y-L. Almost no mention of his status as (at least potentially) a politician and so no mention of his free speech or polices expression rights

A lot of people saying he simply doesn’t fall within legitimate politics so isn’t entitled to any protections

Quite a few references to Cable St and the rise of fascists in Europe in 30s to justify use of violence as ‘it’s the only thing they understand’

Are those comparisons appropriate? Not sure. Problem is we may only know when it’s too late

I remain worried by this (what looks to me) general sense that physical violence, from ordinary citizens, is now (always was?) needed to fight people like Y-L, and a bit of disdain for softies who talk about rights and the importance of non-violent liberal democratic politics

Let’s see where this leads. What will happen during Euro elections when UKIP racist candidates roam the streets? Will they be physically attacked? Is that ok?

I am not condoning their politics, but I ask the genuine question where do the boundaries lie? We need to decide

Also, a lot of people saying it’s ‘ok to punch actual Nazis’

Probably correct! But a lot of people think a lot of people are Nazis these days.

Are UKIP ‘actual Nazis’?

Are the far left?

Are the ERG?

I have heard many people calling all of them Nazis!

A lot of claims about the fact that ridicule is the best/only thing which will prevent public support for Y-L.

This claim *may* be correct but I would like to see some evidence. Public attitudes are measurable and it isn’t clear how Y-L’s prospective supporters react to this

It’s also entirely possible that the ‘free speech’ brigade will be rallied by these kind of incidents who may even see the resort to physically attacking Y-L as an admission that his arguments are too strong to face.